Description

In this exploration of the administration of law and its role in the lives of ordinary people in the northern provinces of the Roman Empire, Serena Connolly draws upon a rich but little-known legal collection from the late 3rd century known as the Codex Hermogenianus. The codex is composed of imperial responses to petitions sent to Rome, written by a team of the emperor’s legal experts. These petitions and responses provide a wealth of information about provincial legal administration and the lives of the non-elite petitioners. The man who prostituted his wife, the mother whose malicious son undersold her farm, and the slaves who posed as free men to get a loan are just a few of the lives to encounter. Lives behind the Laws makes a valuable contribution to Roman social, political, and legal history.

Author Bio

Serena Connolly is Assistant Professor of Classics at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, New Brunswick.

Reviews

"A very interesting contribution to our picture of the imperial system of petition and response. . . . Connolly gives us . . . a synoptic view of what was arguably the most important role of the Roman emperor during the Early Empire." —Michael Peachin, New York University

"This is truly a fine book, as readable and engaging as it is insightful. . . . [I]t should surely be on the shelves of every Roman social and legal historian" —Bryn Mawr Classical Review

"The clear analytical design, up-to-date and well-researched bibliography, and demonstrated capacity for logistic analysis make this a valuable contribution to the social and administrative history of the later Roman Empire." —American Historical Review , 116.1, February 2011

"[A] highly thought-provoking as well as finely written and carefully argued work, which will doubtlessly prove useful to those studying the Roman legal system and Diocletian's reign." —Phoenix

"The diverse material from the CH, its description, analysis, and proposed contextual explanation, will pique different curiosities in different readers, and Connolly’s carefully argued and overall persuasive book will satisfy them all to some extent." —The European Legacy

Customer Reviews

Table of Contents

Abbreviations Preface Introduction1. Seeking Justice in the Roman World Petitioning in the Roman World2. The Rescript System The Codex Hermogenianus The Rescript System in Motion The Work of the scrinium libellorum 3. The Rescript System in Context Petitioners Places 4. Using the System “With the Law” “Before the Law” “Against the Law”5. The Emperor and his Petitioners Petitioners in Need: The New Understanding of Poverty The Roles of the Emperor Limits on the Emperor The Nexus of Power: Emperor, Officials, PetitionersConclusionAppendix 1Appendix 2MapNotesBibliographyIndex